Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Hongjiang District, Criminal Investigation Unit.
Bai Muchuan’s appearance surprised the detectives at the office.
“Boss, are you reluctant to leave us? We’re so moved!”
“Scram, don’t talk nonsense!” Bai Muchuan glared at Detective Tang. “You’re in-charge of this case?”
“Yes! Heheh, Captain Bai has a good eye. You even know this without asking.”
Detective Tang was a rookie detective. To put it nicely, letting him take this case might be good experience for him. However, it also showed that the police did not pay much attention to this case.
“The fog this morning was rather thick. When the kidnapping took place, it was rather deep in the alley, and the sky was still dim. We visited a lot of people, but basically, most of them did not see the incident clearly and not sure if it was really a kidnapping case. There are even people who say that it could be an acquaintance who’ve come to fetch the girl.”
Bai Muchuan listened to him as he flipped through the statements.
Detective Tang took a deep breath, his attitude was even more proper.
“Captain Bai, currently, the one who insisted that it’s a kidnapping case… is actually a Primary Three boy. The one who reported the case is the boy’s mother. The boy’s mother said she only heard a girl’s scream, and when she turned to look, the car doors were already closed. She called the police as her child insisted her to do so, and that she didn’t know anything else.”
Bai Muchuan frowned. “Where’s the statement of the child?”
Detective Tang was in a quandary. “The child’s mother refused to let him tell us anything. We’re still communicating with her…”
It was common thinking of people to not want to cause trouble. So the only witness who dare to speak the truth was a child?
“The child saw what happened, but the adults didn’t. Is this the story about the ‘Emperor’s New Clothes’?”
Detective Tang saw Bai Muchuan’s gloomy face and quickly poured him a cup of water.
“Heh, Captain Bai, don’t worry, we’re still making our rounds to visit the residents. There’ll be news soon!”
“Hm.”
Detective Tang actually did not know why Bai Muchuan was particularly concerned about this case.
Even more so than any other previous cases.
His facial expression, his appearance, and his action from hurrying back from the airport had revealed his emotions.
“Listen to me, Little Tang!” Bai Muchuan spoke suddenly, his slender fingers tapping on the table lightly, “The person who got kidnapped is most probably Xiang Wan. We can start with her social connections and contact the negotiating team to get ready. Once the kidnappers show up…”
Suddenly, he stopped talking.
Fang Yuanyuan was right about something—Xiang Wan had no money.
What exactly did the kidnappers want from her?
Bai Muchuan squinted his eyes as he contemplated over something.
After a while, he opened the latest chapter of “Murder The Dream Guy” with his phone.
Xiang Wan had not updated her book for several days.
The last chapter still ended with that paragraph:
“Flowers really do not grow from the dust. She would rather keep her lonely heart till old age than insist on a hopeless love. ”
Bai Muchuan propped up his forehead.
A few seconds later, he turned around to look at Detective Tang.
“Little Tang, give me the information of the one who reported the case!”
…
Xiang Wan had a really simple social circle.
There were only a handful of people that she would come in contact with. She stayed home most of the time and hardly contacted her friends as well as her relatives.
It was now 7:00 p.m. Twelve hours have passed since Xiang Wan went missing. Besides Fang Yuanyuan, no one else knew that she had gone missing.
The sky started to get darker.
There was no news from the kidnappers.
The police visited countless residents who might have witnessed the incident.
However, the police did not get any valuable clues from them.
A person’s memory could be a weird thing. Even if it was the same incident, each of them told a different story.
The only one who could offer valuable leads should be the mother and son who was closest to the spot where Xiang Wan was taken away—the ones who reported the case.
However, the mother refused to cooperate with the police. She insisted that the child’s current state of mind was not suitable to offer a statement. There was nothing the police could do about her at the moment.
…
The time was now 7:30 p.m. in the evening.
Bai Muchuan and Detective Huang finally caught the mother and child outside their house as they were trying to sneak back home.
Green Garden Estate.
The mother and son lived in the lower floor of the same building as Xiang Wan; they were neighbors.
The young mother was a little alarmed at the sight of the detectives outside her home.
“I really didn’t see the incident clearly. As for my son… Detective, my son is only eight years old this year. His dad’s… no longer, no longer around. I really don’t want him to be involved in these matters.”
A widow living with her child would naturally choose not to get involved when it came to such matters.
Bai Muchuan nodded his head and walked closer to the mother and son. He patted the head of the boy who tried to hide under his mother’s axilla and showed him a smile.
“Your child is very brave. If your husband knew about this, he would be proud of his son.”
His smile incited emotions.
The woman’s eyes went red, but her attitude was still very adamant.
“Detective, I’ve told you three times about what I saw, there’s really nothing else I can say…”
Bai Muchuan creased his eyebrows and looked directly at her eyes.
“How does the girl look like? What did she wear?”
The woman shook her head. “I didn’t see her.”
Bai Muchuan asked, “What car is that?”
The woman was startled for a while. “I’ve said it earlier that it’s a white car. As to the fact whether it’s a kidnap, I’m really not sure…”
“Which brand?”
“I don’t know about cars. I can’t tell.”
Bai Muchuan showed her the pictures of various cars on his mobile phone.
“Tell us the type of car. A sedan, SUV or off-road vehicle?”
“They all look similar, I can’t really tell…”
Once driven out of the alley, it would be the main road. There were countless white cars that flowed into the main traffic, it would be like looking for a needle in a haystack without the car model and a car plate number…
Suddenly, Bai Muchuan let out a peal of laughter.
“Even if it was just a glimpse, the brain would have formed an image. Try describing it in detail…”
“Detective, I’ve already described three times. Can you let us go already?”
“You’ve said it three times, but it’s not quite the same?”
“I… I really can’t remember clearly as I didn’t pay attention… I called the police and told them all that I know. I’ve fulfilled the duty of a citizen. The rest of the matter will be up to the police. Please don’t give us unnecessary trouble. My child is still young, I don’t want our lives to be affected…”
Bai Muchuan lowered his head as his gaze landed on the little boy who was biting his lips.
“Children do not lie, especially the clever and brave little ones.”
The woman panicked slightly, but she was unable to hold her son’s tongue.
“Uncle Detective, I saw everything.”
“Don’t talk nonsense!” The woman tried to stop her son.
“But I really saw everything. That two bad eggs covered that sister’s mouth and made this gesture at us…”
The woman was horrified and wanted to stop her son but was halted by Bai Muchuan’s icy and stern gaze.
Hence, the little boy timidly lifted his hand to make a “gunshot” gesture.
Bai Muchuan smiled and bent down to pat the boy’s head.
“You’re really brave, little one!”
He pulled out the police officer badge from his pocket.
“Do you know what is this?”
“Yes, my teacher has taught me about this. This is the national emblem,” replied the child with a crisp voice.
“That means you don’t have to be afraid. Uncle Detective is here.”
The woman stayed quiet. She gulped as she looked at the national emblem.
“The police could not protect the common people…”
“The police can do it!”
“If we’re remembered by criminals, then…”
“Then we’ll destroy them first!”
The woman looked at his handsome face blankly.
“I’ve seen that girl before. She lived upstairs. Sometimes, we’ll see each other in the corridor and greet each other at most. I don’t know what she does for a living and don’t know why these people wanted to take her away…
“It’s a white Mercedes, I can’t remember the car number plate, but it starts with the ‘A’ number plate, a Jin City car number plate.”